The throttling of intake air is a known way of controlling the output of an engine, such as an internal combustion engine. Often, internal combustion engines use throttle bodies to throttle the intake air to the desired flow rate. However, the throttling of air may cause a loss in efficiency during partial throttle conditions. Specifically, throttle bodies in some embodiments use butterfly valves to throttle the flow of intake air. While butterfly valves are known for their simplicity and reliability, they provide the throttling function by constricting the air intake path to a smaller area, which creates flow losses.
Prior art solutions have been developed which seek to control the flow of intake air while recovering some of the energy lost in the throttling process. Some of these prior art solutions recover energy using mechanical means, while others recover energy electrically. In those situations, the recovered electrical energy may exceed the demands of the vehicle electrical system, in which case, the excess electrical energy must be dissipated. One approach to dissipating the excess energy involves short-circuiting the generator stator coils to regulate the electrical power output, however, this may cause current ripple or electrical noise that can be detrimental to other electrical components. Additionally, short-circuiting the excess energy may result in relatively high current, which, in turn, generates heat. This excess heat also must be dissipated to prevent component overheating; however, since the throttle loss recovery system is typically under the hood of a vehicle where temperatures may already be elevated, dissipating excess electrical energy in a manner that produces heat under the hood of the vehicle merely exacerbates another problem.